Method and apparatus for orienting a rod or tube having a beveled end

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a method and apparatus for orienting a rod or tube having a beveled end. An example is the needle in an intravenous needle assembly which includes a grip for manipulation of the assembly during venipuncture. Basically, the apparatus comprises a tubular orienting cartridge including a beveled insert within the cartridge. A needle is inserted into the cartridge from a hopper and feeding device. After the needle is inserted in a horizontal position the tubular cartridge is rotated into an upright position and gently vibrated in order to align the beveled needle point on the corresponding beveled surface of the insert within the cartridge to thereby orient it. The orienting cartridge containing the properly oriented needle is thereupon rotated back to a horizontal position to deposit the needle within a mold with the beveled point thereof in proper alignment. The plastic hub, grip or wings are then molded in place about the needle. The beveled needle point of the resultant device is accordingly in proper alignment with the grip or wings for subsequent venipuncture.

ilnite States Patent 72] Inventor Wilbert W. Redmer 5311 Golden Harbor Drive, Boca Raton, Fla. 33432 [21 Appl. No. 49,482 [22] Filed June 24, 1970 [45] Patented Jan.4, 1972 [54] METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ORIENTING A ROI) 0R TUBE HAVING A BEVELED END 5 Claims, 12 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl 214/1 Q, 198/33 R [SI] Int. Cl B65g 47/24 [50] Field of Search 198/33, 33 R; 214/1 R, 1

[ 5 6] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,786,566 3/1951 Taggartet al l98/33.1 3,118,548 1/1964 Bussetal 214/10 3,472,356 10/1969 Reppert 198/33 R Assistant Examiner-Frank E. Werner Attorney-Robert L. Niblack ABSTRACT: Disclosed is a method and apparatus for orienting a rod or tube having a beveled end. An example is the needle in an intravenous needle assembly which includes a grip for manipulation of the assembly during venipuncture. Basically, the apparatus comprises a tubular orienting cartridge including a beveled insert within the cartridge. A needle is inserted into the cartridge from a hopper and feeding device. After the needle is inserted in a horizontal position the tubular cartridge is rotated into an upright position and gently vibrated in order to align the beveled needle point on the corresponding beveled surface of the insert within the cartridge to thereby orient it. The orienting cartridge containing the properly oriented needle is thereupon rotated back to a horizontal position to deposit the needle within a mold with the beveled point thereof in proper alignment. The plastic hub, grip or wings are then molded in place about the needle. The beveled needle point of the resultant device is accordingly in proper alignment with the grip or wings for subsequent venipuncture.

PATENTEU JAN 4 I972 Inventor Wilbert w. Redmer Alida 8. Z11?- ZIIIII/lfirl/ll/Al/l/ll VII/d PATENTED JAN 4 I972 SHEET 3 OF 3 mu om BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Venipuncture devices for infusion or administration of drugs and medications or for withdrawing blood generally comprise a cannula or needle with plastic tubing affixed to the hub of the needle which is on the end away from the point to provide a passageway through the tubing into the needle and then into the vein of the patient. To facilitate venipuncture and insertion of the needle into a vein, a grip or holder is generally affixed to the needle on the end away from the point to provide a convenient gripping surface for manipulation of the needle during venipuncture. Such a device is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,064,648 for an intravenous needle assembly and includes a pair of foldable wings which are molded in place about the needle. The wings provide a firm gripping surface which can be manipulated freely and accurately to thereby provide better control over entry into the vein of the patient. With such devices it is important that the needle be properly oriented in the mold before the plastic material is injected to form the wings or other corresponding surface. Since the wings or gripping surfaces are afiixed permanently to the needle, it is important that the needle be properly oriented to insure that the beveled point thereof is in the proper position with respect to the handle or wings. Failure to orient the needle will result in the beveled point thereof being in a position out of alignment with the axis of the grip or wings so that when the wings are gripped for the purpose of making a venipuncture, the needle point will not be properly aligned and may result in a painful entry. Devices such as those illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,064,648 are generally produced on plastic injection molding equipment. It has been the practice in order to obtain proper orientation to manually place the needles in the mold in the proper position. Manual feeding of needles is necessarily slow and inaccurate with improper orientation of the needle with respect to a vertical transverse axis of about percent generally resulting.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION To accurately orient tubes or rods having beveled ends as, for example, needles in a molding process which results in considerably higher production levels with lower levels of unusable devices there is provided a method and apparatus for orienting such needles. The apparatus basically comprises a tubular orienting cartridge which includes a beveled insert therein designed to mate substantially with the heel of the beveled needle point to thereby orient it in a fixed position. The needles are fed from a hopper and feeding device into the tubular orienting cartridge which is positioned horizontally. After insertion of the needle within the cartridge, the tubular cartridge is rotated into a vertical position and is vibrated gently to cause the beveled needle point to align itself with the beveled insert within the cartridge. This results in orientation of the needle. The tubular cartridge is then rotated back to a horizontal position wherein the properly oriented needle is deposited into an appropriate mold used to form the hub and grip or wings onto the needle. The mold is then closed and the plastic is injected to form the hub and wings or other gripping surface.

The orienting device and method of the present invention can be employed with a conventional injection molding machine. Commonly with such machines, a plurality of cooperating or mating mold parts are employed in injection molding of small parts in order to increase the rate of production. As described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,309,739 for a plastic injection machine, the molds can be mounted on a shuttle table so that one set of mold parts are closed and the mold cavity therein injected with plastic to form the desired part while one or more other sets of molds are available for cooling, removal of finished parts and loading into the mold cavity of any special part, such as the needle in an intravenous needle assembly. The shuttle table is then moved to align the mold with LII an injection station in the machine while the mold which has just been injected with plastic is at the same time moved to an ejecting station. Likewise, to increase the rate of production, each mold may contain a plurality of cavities so that with each injection of plastic, a plurality of parts are formed. If desired, an orienting cartridge of the present invention can be aligned with each mold cavity at the loading station so that a needle can be inserted into each mold cavity in a properly oriented position prior to injecting the plastic.

DRAWINGS The invention will be better understood upon consideration of the following description together with the following drawings in which:

FIG. I is an exploded view of the cannula orienting cartridge of the present invention;

FIG. 2A is a side elevational view in cross section showing the cannula entering the cartridge;

FIG. 2B is a side elevational view in cross section showing the cartridge positioned vertically, preparatory to orientation of the cannula;

FIG. 2C is a side elevational view in cross section showing the cartridge in the vertical position with the needle point properly oriented for molding;

FIG. 2D is a side elevational view in cross section showing the cartridge in the horizontal position opposite in direction from its initial position for positioning of the oriented cannula in a mold;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view partially in cross section showing the cartridge in the position of FIG. 2D with the cannula being positioned within a mold;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view partially in cross section showing the cannula in position for molding;

FIG. 5 is a plan elevational view of an intravenous needle assembly fabricated by the method and apparatus of this invention;

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of the intravenous needle assembly of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a side elevational view showing a hopper, shuttle and feeding device for feeding cannulae into the orienting cartridge;

FIG. 8 is a side elevational view partially in cross section of the feeding device of FIG. 6 showing cannulae being transferred;

FIG. 9 is a side elevational view partially in cross section of the feeding device of FIG. 6 showing cannulae in position for feeding into the orienting cartridge.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION FIG. 1 illustrates a cannula orienting cartridge 10 of the present invention which comprises a hollow tubular element 11 which houses a beveled insert 12 for orienting of a beveled face such as a cannula needle point. The insert includes a beveled face 13 and a longitudinal slot 14 which fits over a pin 15 inserted transversely in the tubular element 11. The slotted arrangement permits the insert to move longitudinally in limited fashion as hereinafter explained. A bushing 16 having a cylindrical portion 17 of substantially the same diameter as the bore 18 of the tubular element 11 fits into one end of the tubular element 11. A passageway 19 in the bushing 16 of a slightly larger diameter than the cannula to be oriented acts to guide the cannula point to the beveled insert 12. The bushing 16 is retained in the tubular element 11 by a setscrew 24. Housed within the tubular element 11 is a coiled spring 20 retained within the tubular element 11 by a slidable plunger 21 and threaded plug 22, the plunger 21 being in engagement with the beveled insert 12 to maintain pressure against the insert 12. The spring 20 is of light strength and facilitates vibration of the insert 12 to achieve orientation of the needle 25 as well as permitting compensation for variation in length of the needles 25 as hereinafter explained. The slot 14 permits the insert 14 to move longitudinally in both directions depending on the pressure exerted by the spring or the beveled object being oriented.

Referring to FIGS. 2A through 2D, cannulae from an appropriate feeding device are fed one at a time in a random position into the passageway 19 of the bushing 16 as illustrated in FIG. 2A. The orienting cartridge 10 is thereupon rotated to a vertical position as illustrated in FIG. 2B. The cartridge 10 is then vibrated gently to permit the point 26 of the cannula to orient itself on the corresponding beveled face 13 of the insert 12. The angle of the needle point 26 is generally not continuous but rather has two angles which intersect at approximately the middle of the point. The angle of the beveled face 13 of the insert 12 preferably corresponds to the angle of the needle point at its base or widest part of the point. Although the cartridge 10 is vibrated gently so as not to injure the needle point 26 as it orients itself, by forming the beveled face 13 to the same angle as the angle on the widest part of the needle point this further insures that the needle point 26 will not be damaged since it will not come in contact with the beveled face 13. After the cannula 25 is oriented as illustrated in FIG. 2C, the cartridge 10 is rotated to a horizontal position opposite from its original position (FIG. 2D) to position the cannula 25 in a mold (not shown) in a proper molding position so that in the completed cannula or needle assembly the point will be in proper alignment with the grip or wings for subsequent venipuncture. While the cartridge 10 is illustrated as being rotated 180 from a loading position wherein the needle is loaded into the cartridge 10 (FIG. 2A) while it is in a first horizontal position to a second horizontal position wherein the needle is loaded into a mold (FIG. 2D), it is understood that by utilizing one or more movable stations for the cartridge 10, mold or feeding device, the cartridge 10 can be rotated from a first horizontal position to a vertical position and back to a horizontal position the same as its original position, i.e., rotated 90 and back 90 to its original position.

FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate placement of the oriented cannula 25 into a mold preparatory to forming a plastic hub and grip or wings about the cannula. In FIG. 3 the orienting cartridge 10 is shown positioned in a holder 30 which in turn is affixed to a rotatable shaft 31. In this position the orienting cartridge 10 contains the oriented needle 25 and corresponds to the position of the cartridge 10 shown in FIG. 2D. As illustrated, the cannula 25 is shown positioned in the lower half of the mold which is shown in the open position. Since conventional production grade cannulae can vary in length by as much as one-sixteenth of an inch, before the mold 35 is closed and the plastic injected a push pin 36 positioned in axial alignment with the needle 25 is activated by means of coacting cams 37 and 38 to position the cannula 25 lengthwise within the mold 35. This operation is facilitated by the spring-loaded arrangement of the cartridge 10 and the movable insert 12 as previously described. After the proper positioning within the mold of the oriented cannula 25, the mold is closed as illustrated in FIG. 4 and the plastic is injected to produce the desired hub and gripping surface.

The orienting cartridge 10 or plurality thereof if they are used with a plurality of molds or with a multicavity mold as previously described, are positioned in holders 30 which are in alignment with each mold 35 cavity. In turn, the holders 30 are affixed to a rotatable shaft 31 which can be rotated to position the orienting cartridges l0 sequentially in the positions shown in FIGS. 2A through 2D. As previously explained, when the cartridge 10 is in the position illustrated in FIG. 28, it is gently vibrated to orient the needle point 26 on the beveled face 13 of the insert 12 as can be seen in FIG. 2C. A convenient method of vibrating the cartridges 10 is to attach an industrial vibrator to the shaft 31. Vibration of the shaft 31 will result in vibration of the holder 30 and hence the cartridge 10. A suitable vibration inducer is a ball vibrator in which a steel ball is propelled by compressed air around hardened steel races at high speeds setting up high-frequency vibrations in all directions.

In FIG. 5 is illustrated an example of an intravenous needle assembly 40 made in accordance with the present invention and including a cannula 25 to which is affixed a plastic hub 41 from which project two opposing foldable wings 42. Formed in fluidtight engagement with the end of the needle 25 opposite the point is a length of flexible tubing 43 with an adapter 44 attached to the opposite end thereof so that a continuous passageway for fluid flow is formed through the cannula 25, the tubing 43 and the adapter 44. As best illustrated in FIG. 6, the needle point 26 is oriented with respect to the gripping surface or wings 42 so that when the wings 42 are folded into a vertical position and are gripped preparatory to inserting the cannula into a vein, the point is properly aligned for entry into the vein. As illustrated, the vertical axis of the needle point 26 is in alignment with the vertical axis of the gripping surface or wings 42, i.e., the vertical axis of the needle point 26 is in a relationship with the projecting wings 42 before they are folded and gripped preparatory to venipuncture.

FIGS. 7 through 9 illustrate a suitable feeding device for random feeding of cannulae into the orienting cartridge 10. The feeding device 50 comprises an agitator block 51 including an inclined surface 52 and an opposing vertical wall 53 to form a hopper for the cannulae 25 which are positioned in the hopper with their points 26 in the direction of the cartridge 10. The agitator block 51 rests on a fixed block 54 which includes a slot 55 for passage of the cannulae 25 singly in a vertical row. The inclined surface 52 and opposing wall 53 which form the hopper for the cannulae converge in an opening which is aligned with the slot 55 in the block 54 to provide a path for the cannulae 25. Positioned beneath the block 54 and in engagement therewith is a reciprocable shuttle 56 which likewise includes a slot 57 into which the cannulae 25 drop when the slots 55 and 57 in the block 54 and shuttle 56 are in alignment as illustrated in FIG. 6. After a cannula 25 is retained within the slot 57 of the shuttle 56, the shuttle is moved transversely as illustrated in FIG. 8. In engagement with the bottom surface 58 of the shuttle 56 is a fixed block 59 having a slot 60 which is in alignment with the passageway 19 of the bushing 16 in the orienting cartridge 10 and offset with respect to the slot 55. When the slot 57 in the shuttle 56 which contains a cannula 25 picked up as previously described is in alignment with the slot 60 in the fixed block 59, the cannulae 25 will drop into position in the slot 60 for individual loading into anorienting cartridge 10. Loading of the individual cannula 25 into the cartridge 10 can be accomplished by a conventional cam operated push pin similar to the push pin 36 used to align the cannulae 25 in the mold 35 as previously described.

A bellows valve can be used to vibrate the agitator block 51 to facilitate movement of the cannulae 25 into the slot 55 for subsequent transfer to the shuttle 56. Likewise, a conventional air-operated cylinder can be employed to reciprocate the shuttle 56 transversely to transfer cannulae 25 from the slot 55 in the agitator block 51 to the slot 60 in the fixed block 59 preparatory to loading them in an orienting cartridge 10.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for feeding and orienting a rod or tube having a beveled end into a mold prior to introducing plastic into said mold to form the plastic about the rod or tube, said apparatus comprising: feeding means for sequentially and singly feeding a rod or tube into an orienting cartridge, said orienting cartridge comprising a tubular element having a passageway in one end thereof and a beveled insert positioned in the tubular element at the end of the passageway distal from the end of the tubular element, the beveled face of the insert substantially corresponding to the beveled end of the rod or tube and positioned contiguous to said passageway, said cartridge being rotatable from a first horizontal position to a vertical position to a second horizontal position whereby a rod or tube can be inserted into the passageway in said orienting cartridge while in the first horizontal position to orient the beveled end of the rod or tube while the cartridge is in the vertical position and thereafter position the oriented rod or tube for insertion into a mold when the cartridge is in the second horizontal position; and means to vibrate said orienting cartridge when in a vertical position to cause the beveled end of the rod or tube to orient in a mating relationship on the beveled face of the insert in said orienting cartridge.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the feeding means comprises a hopper arranged for retaining a plurality of said rods or tubes, said hopper having an opening therein for exit of the tubes or rods, the hopper being positioned on a fixed block, said block having a vertical slot therethrough in alignment with the opening in the hopper whereby the tubes or rods will pass by gravity from the hopper through the opening and into the slot; a second fixed block positioned beneath the first fixed block and having a slot therein offset from the slot in the first fixed block and in alignment with the passageway in the orienting cartridge wherein a single tube or rod can be inserted into the orienting cartridge from said slot; and a reciprocable shuttle having a slot therethrough and being reciprocable between the slots in said blocks to thereby pick up a tube or rod from the slot in the first fixed block and transfer it to the slot in the second fixed block for subsequent insertion into the orienting cartridge.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the orienting cartridge includes a plug in said tubular element in engagement with the insert on the end of the insert distal from the beveled face thereof; and a spring positioned in said tubular element and retained between said plug and the end of the tubular element opposite the end having the passageway therein to thereby bias the beveled insert toward the passageway.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the orienting cartridge projects from a holder, said holder being engageable with a rotatable shaft, said shaft arranged for rotation of the holder and cartridge through the aforesaid positions; and a pushpin aligned with the longitudinal axis of the oriented tube or rod when it is positioned in said mold to compensate for any varying length of the rods or tubes.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the pushpin is cam operated. 

1. Apparatus for feeding and orienting a rod or tube having a beveled end into a mold prior to introducing plastic into said mold to form the plastic about the rod or tube, said apparatus comprising: feeding means for sequentially and singly feeding a rod or tube into an orienting cartridge, said orienting cartridge comprising a tubular element having a passageway in one end thereof and a beveled insert positioned in the tubular element at the end of the passageway distal from the end of the tubular element, the beveled face of the insert substantially corresponding to the beveled end of the rod or tube and positioned contiguous to said passageway, said cartridge being rotatable from a first horizontal position to a vertical position to a second horizontal position whereby a rod or tube can be inserted into the passageway in said orienting cartridge while in the first horizontal position to orient the beveled end of the rod or tube while the cartridge is in the vertical position and thereafter position the oriented rod or tube for insertion into a mold when the cartridge is in the second horizontal position; and means to vibrate said orienting cartridge when in a vertical position to cause the beveled end of the rod or tube to orient in a mating relationship on the beveled face of the insert in said orienting cartridge.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the feeding means comprises a hopper arranged for retaining a plurality of said rods or tubes, said hopper having an opening therein for exit of the tubes or rods, the hopper being positioned on a fixed block, said block having a vertical slot therethrough in alignment with the opening in the hopper whereby the tubes or rods will pass by gravity from the hopper through the opening and into the slot; a second fixed block positioned beneath the first fixed block and having a slot therein offset from the slot in the first fixed block and in alignment with the passageway in the orienting cartridge wherein a single tube or rod can be inserted into the orienting cartridge from said slot; and a reciprocable shuttle having a slot therethrough and being reciprocable between the slots in said blocks to thereby pick up a tube or rod from the slot in the first fixed block and transfer it to the slot in the second fixed block for subsequent insertion into the orienting cartridge.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the orienting cartridge includes a plug in said tubular element in engagement with the insert on the end of the insert distal from the beveled face thereof; and a spring positioned in said tubular element and retained between said plug and the end of the tubular element opposite the end haviNg the passageway therein to thereby bias the beveled insert toward the passageway.
 4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the orienting cartridge projects from a holder, said holder being engageable with a rotatable shaft, said shaft arranged for rotation of the holder and cartridge through the aforesaid positions; and a pushpin aligned with the longitudinal axis of the oriented tube or rod when it is positioned in said mold to compensate for any varying length of the rods or tubes.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the pushpin is cam operated. 